Arc Furnace vs the World
by Greatness942
Summary: After giving Cinder mercy during the siege of Mistral, Jaune finds himself face to face with Salem's Guardians: seven individuals handpicked to hunt down and kill both Cinder and whoever gets in their way. It's going to be a bloodbath, but who's complaining?
1. I: A Plea for Mercy

(A/N: For now, though, welcome to my first long-term story! This was inspired by a Whose Line is it Saturday? post on /r/RWBY. This won't follow Scott Pilgrim vs The World's plot, but I hope you enjoy what I'm giving.)

Somedays, I wonder why I get myself into these situations. I mean, one second I had my sword to the throat of the girl who killed my partner, the next few minutes? Sitting across from me and telling me all about this "little problem" she's having. I guess I should introduce myself, and her for that matter. I'm Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. I am pretty sure ladies love it...as much as I can be. Sitting across from me? Cinder Fall, the killer of the girl I loved. Let's...start at the beginning. And, maybe I can stop narrating. Something tells me that I won't be able to keep up this job for long.

* * *

As the buildings of Mistral melted apart in a sea of red and bronze around them, the sheer heat and the sounds of Grimm growling making it seem more like Hell then the once proud kingdom that stood in it's place, the sound of broken bricks and shattered glass completed the choir and destruction as a blond haired Huntsmen was blasted through a nearby building onto a grassy field. Jaune shook his head and carefully stood to his feet, gripping the ground under him to hold steady his aching body, as he looked up to the girl who perpetrated the knockback and injuries resulting. Cinder stared at him with an unflinching gaze, only one eye still there after the Fall of Beacon to use to burn a hole through Jaune's head in sheer hatred, as he stepped to him with her swords held steady. With surprising speed becoming of a Huntsman in training, Jaune suddenly sweeped Cinder's legs before swiping upward with his sword, sending her flying through the power of his strike. Flipping through the air, Cinder turned her swords into her trademark bow, but Jaune jumped up and gripped the bow before gravity took hold yet again. With the force of the cruel mistress by his side, he slammed Cinder into the ground with her bow as the fulcrum needed, breaking the dirt floor under her as he rolled back. Turning back, he saw Cinder try to get up, but before she could, Jaune pointed his sword at her throat. "This…" he began, as he began to raise the blade in the air.

"...is for Pyrrha!" he shouted in fury, but before he could deal a crucial blow, he had one last look drawn to her. Her eyes were closed, her lips quivering as she seemed to accept her punishment. Just then, he heard a familiar, high pitched voice shout out from the building he was launched from.

"Jaune!" Ruby yelled out, rushing forward in a sea of rose petals. Before she could say anything, she saw Cinder and let a scowl emerge from her features. Noting Jaune's hesitation, Ruby turned to him and said, "What are we going to do with her?"

Jaune's mind was drawing a blank;not uncommon, but in this situation, he should've had his mind deadset on one thing: ending her life the same as she ended Pyrrha's. Yet, this was exactly the thing keeping him back. He could just hear her voice as he deliberated, her words spelling out " _Jaune, if you kill her, you will be just like her. Revenge isn't the answer for her crimes, and you know that."_. With a sigh, he turned to Ruby as he sheathed his sword.

"We need her to answer for everything she's done. Take her weapons and make sure that Evac's coming," Jaune said as he walked closer to his quarry, "I need to figure out why she did all this." Grabbing her arm with enough force to crack stone, he picked Cinder up to her feet and began to drag to the empty field, away from earshot.

After some walking and dragging, Jaune finally made it to a quiet spot where he could truly vent his frustrations. Throwing her onto the ground, he stood over her and said "Alright, Cinder, I want to know _everything_. Why Beacon? Why Mistral?" he said, kneeling over her. " _Why Pyrrha?!"_ he suddenly yelled, as he wrapped his hands around her neck and furiously picked her up.

As Cinder began to choke, he threw her back down and said "Start talking."

Cinder began to choke out an answer, carefully and slowly enunciating each and every word so that she could actually say it. "I...You….weren't like...this…" she gasped out, with made Jaune's eyes widen with realization. " _I...guess I wasn't this cruel. But after Pyrrha…"_

With another nervous sigh, he said "You're the one who killed the girl I should've spent my time with. Every day I could've spent with her, I spent chasing down Weiss and making goofy attack plans. Then, on the day I realized her feelings for me? On the day she must've felt she could save the day and win the boy in the end? You kill her. You destroy Beacon. You ruin my damn _life_! What did you think was going to happen?"

With Cinder's silence, he sees nothing but thought pass through her eye as she contemplates her answer. With another gasp of breath, she says "I...wanted to please...my Goddess."

Jaune simply scoffed and said "Who? Salem? What did she do that would make you destroy a whole kingdom?". With another breath, Cinder simply said "She...saved me…"

Jaune's features suddenly relaxed slightly as he breathed out with a breath he wasn't aware he was holding in. "So, you have a debt to her?"

Cinder nodded as Jaune continued "...You killed millions just to satisfy that;ruined families for that debt, Cinder," Jaune said. "So why should that make this any better?"

Cinder gulped hard, wincing in pain as she did, as she placed a hand to her throat and began to speak, which helped to ease the pain slightly. "She told me I could have anything, on the condition that...I help her," Cinder said, wheezing slightly as she continued. "In exchange for my services, she would keep me alive. She...even gave me Guardians…"

Jaune sat across from Cinder with baited breath as he said "Guardians? Like, really strong Grmm?", a curious tone in his voice.

Cinder shook her head softly and, placing her hand back to her throat, said "No...Salem handpicked seven people from across Remnant...to collect me if I turned traitor. They were given deals...powers...they're strong enough to kill me, if need be," pausing slightly to cough, she continued "And since I've been captured…"

Jaune's eyes widened, his hands suddenly shaking as he learned exactly what she was implying. "Oh, God," he began, his voice nervous and light. "They'll go after me, too, right?"

Cinder nodded as she spoke "Civilians are expendable. I...need to...die. It's their...their mission."

Jaune leaned back onto his hands as his thought raced through his head. " _OhGodOhGodohgodohgodohsweetmercifulBrothers, I AM GOING TO DIE!"_ he thought, only to snapped out by a low hum. Turning to Cinder, he saw her look down with regret, her lone eye watering slightly.

Before Jaune could speak, Cinder said "Look...I know you hate me...but you kept me alive. You need me for something. Please...can you help me at least _try_ to stop these...these Guardians?"

With more thoughts in his head, Jaune listened in, his mind going numb through the sheer amount of fear represented. " _On the one hand, we do hate her, and if we stay out of the way, she dies. But...on the other hand?_ "

As Cinder sat there shaking, with regret and emotion on her features as a tear actually fell to her dress, he made up his mind. "Cinder...fine. I'll help you. I can't just let you die, and these people could hurt my friends getting to you. You're hurt, and you seem so... _different._ " As Cinder looked up, stunned, she saw the blond look at her with more pity than anger with him.

"Let me make something clear: I still, at least think, I hate you. No matter how I feel about how you are now, I still don't _trust_ you. I do pity you, and you've clearly changed, but I can never get over what you did to me. But...I'm willing to help." With that, Cinder nodded with a small smile on her face as the sound of a Mistralian transport boomed in their ears.


	2. II: The Median of Combat

As the soft purr of the evacuation ship's engines calmed down the bitter emotions previously on display, the tapping of a younger girl's fingers against the seat of the ship provided a rhythm and pattern to further bring down the heat and anxiety brought upon by Jaune and Cinder's discussion. Ruby nervously brought her hand away from the cushioned seat, before turning her head to the aforementioned blond. He had his hands in his lap, his eyes shied away from anyone else as he contemplates something. Finally, he cleared his throat, before turning to the redheaded Huntress, as he says "Um, Ruby? I think I may have made a mistake."

Ruby herself looked into Jaune's eyes as she then says "What do you mean?", not knowing of the events on the ground. Jaune then began explaining. About the Guardians, about Cinder's motivation, and about how he promised to help. Through it all, Ruby nodded and listened closely, making sure to take a note of everything. Despite that, she still took a second to process everything.

"Well…" she began, trying to gather her thoughts into words. "Cinder is a murderer and a monster, yeah...but, if _that's_ what happened to make her like that...". A brief pause made Jaune look back to her, to which he saw Ruby breathing hard as though holding something back. Her hands began trembling as she carefully said "Jaune, be careful. No matter why she did it, she still did horrible things. Pyrrha, Penny, most of Vale...I get it, I really do, but that's never going to make her a good person."

Jaune nodded quickly, placing a hand upon Ruby's own. He could feel the shaking down to her fingers as he held them in his own hand. "Don't worry, Ruby. I will." Through his reassurance, he could barely see a blush on her face as he then stood up and approached the Med Ward, which held his other friends.

* * *

"So then, me and Blakey were like 'Hey, Adam! _Hands off!_ '. He turned around, and then I smacked him with this baby!", said Yang as she held up her prosthetic arm in her other hand. While still attached, the yellow and black metal arm remains disabled as it hangs limp in her still flesh hand. Sitting one bed away from her, the white haired heiress looks to her with her arms crossed.

"I'm not as appreciative of your efforts," Weiss said in a disapproving tone, "That was expensive Atlas technology and you broke it punching Adam out!"

Walking up to both beds, her bow not replaced as she had thrown them all away in Menagerie, Blake said "At least Adam's down and the White Fang is returning to it's normal state. Worth more than an arm, don't you agree?" Despite her attitude, Weiss did nod to Blake's response. Suddenly, the door opened as Jaune walks in. Weiss shifted in her bed and Blake looked and nodded at him. Yang, meanwhile, sat up in her bed.

"Hey, Vomit Boy!" she shouted, "Wanna hear about how I punched Adam's teeth into his throat?" Jaune rolled his eyes with a grin as he heard her nickname for him.

With a wave of his hand, he said "Nah, I'm good." Looking around, he doesn't see Ren or Nora anywhere within the sterile Medbay, to which he asked "Um, where's Ren and Nora?"

"Probably _boop_ ing their brains out somewhere." Yang said, with a very large grin plastered on her face. A loud groan comes from Weiss's bed as Jaune's palm meets his face with an audible slap.

"Yang, that was terrible." Jaune said, himself groaning after hearing it. With a wave of his hand, he began walking out of the room, taking himself towards a side room. Turning the knob, he opened the door to find exactly what he wanted. It was a sort of holding cell, where two guards stood next to Cinder, handcuffs shackling her to the table she was sat at. Jaune sat across from her at the chair stationed at the table. The guards stood back, and let the two speak.

"So," Jaune began, his hands clasped together and all his focus on Cinder, "How exactly will this work? Does the Guardian show up? Do I meet up with them?"

Cinder cleared her damaged throat as she began formulating an explanation. With a hand pressed to her throat, she explained "The Guardians...will attack you...at random. Trying to...catch me off guard."

Jaune hunched over in his seat as a whisper left his lips, "So, I'm going to be virtually unprepared?" A single nod from Cinder was all that was needed for Jaune to proceed to slam his head into the table. While she was unable to reach out to the boy, a single cough roused him from his rest as she looked to her side.

Turning to look him in the eye, she said "There is...one warning. A median...who can use the scroll...of anyone protecting...the traitor, if...they so wish."

"Does it happen automatically?" Jaune said, cracking his knuckles absentmindedly as he awaited an answer.

"Yes," Cinder said, "If someone pledges...protection for one of...Salem's deserters, which never happens...the median can contact the...protector directly. It can be...anyone. A close friend...a Guardian themselves...even the traitor, on...rare occasions."

At that moment, Jaune's scroll began to pick up a frequency, and thus began to softly vibrate in his pocket. Pulling the device out, it seemed like the frequency was both a video call, and yet nowhere near the Evac Shuttle. " _That's impossible!"_ Jaune thought, " _The CCT is still down...how?_ "

Clicking on the video call revealed an odd sight. It appeared similar in format to a TV show, with cameras all placed upon one individual. It was in black and white, and shot in front of a fireplace with two bookshelves on either side. Sitting in a leather bound rocking chair was a curious young man. He had short hair and a focused look as he read a book. He was sipping something out of a nearby mug, and was wearing a finely pressed suit. Suddenly, as if only now noticing he was being filmed, he whipped his head towards the camera and grinned a genuine smile. "Well, hello kiddies and viewers of all ages!" he excitedly called out, "My name is Victor Briar, but you may call me The Narrator."

"Are you kidding me?" Jaune incredulously asked, "My median is some TV host I've never met? How will that help?"

The Narrator looked towards the camera before clapping his hands, color fading into view. His hair was brown, and his eyes a crimson red, as was his tie. "Well, what median would you prefer, you noodly dipstick?" he said, before carefully sipping his now-green drink. His smile returned soon after, as he seemed to stare at the now-stunned Jaune. "Sorry, Mr. Arc. I fly off the handle very frequently."

Jaune stammered out an "I-I can see t-that." before leaning back in his chair. After giving a glance to Cinder, who looked just as confused as him, he said "Well, Mr. Briar-"

"Either Vic or The Narrator is fine." The Narrator said with a smooth tone.

"Alright, Vic, are you here to tell me who my first Guardian is?" Jaune said. To his surprise, or perhaps dismay, The Narrator chuckled slightly before opening the book back up, having closed it to clap earlier on.

"No, sir," The Narrator said, "Your first Guardian _is_ soon, but I can guarantee he's a day-after-tomorrow situation. You need your rest! Just wanted to introduce myself to both you and my loving audience." While no audience could be seen, Jaune thought he had heard some off-screen cheering, though the volume wasn't high. With a salute, The Narrator disappeared into static, and Jaune proceeded to stand up. Waving the guards back over, he left the room and headed back to the main seating. Ruby was asleep in her chair, as Ren and Nora were both near here. Oddly, both looked like a bedraggled mess, their hair wild and clothes haphazardly thrown on. Jaune paid it no mind, however, as he proceeded to sit down and collapse into a deep, well deserved sleep.


	3. III: Dossier: The Gambler

_A Few Hours Later…._

As sunlight poured in from a nearby window, golden rays shining through the openings in the blinds in a beautiful display, it didn't take long before the red-clad Huntress's eyes fluttered open. As Ruby sat up in her bed, her silver eyes checking each corner of the room to jog her memory, she looked back down to find the change of clothes provided to her. A buttoned up grey shirt with long sleeves, and grey pajama pants, similar to her garb at Patch. Looking to her left towards the other bed in the room, she noticed a lack of golden yellow hair and sighed. Everything clicked quietly, then, as she remembered where she was. It was a Mistralian township on the coastline, protected from Grimm by Mistral's military, which provided some comfort to the reaper, but with no sign of Jaune, it didn't help matters much. Standing up from her bed, she walked towards the door and softly turned the knob, opening to door, to see a sight which made her chuckle under her breath.

"Yeah? Well, I took out, like, fifty White Fang, two hundred Grimm, and I may have accidentally stepped on a squirrel." Nora boasted, her arms crossed in defiance as her toothy grin showed a small chip in her front teeth. In front of her, a certain cybernetic brawler shook her head, with her prosthetic missing from view. Apparently, Yang was released from the Medbay.

"Well, me, Blake, and Sun punched Adam Taurus's lights out, and I singlehandedly pummeled an Atlesian Paladin into pieces...again." Yang proudly said, as she thought back to that exact moment with wistful eyes. Ruby also stared off into space, looking directly at the sight.

* * *

With fire and the screams of civilians all around her, Ruby barely had any time to think as she flew around in a sea of rose petals, shooting down Grimm after Grimm all she began calling out to her team. "Yang? Blake? Weiss?" Ruby shouted out, pulling the trigger on an unsuspecting Beowulf who soon had only shadowy mist for a head, "Jaune?"

Suddenly, a loud thud sounded behind her, shaking the ground behind the young Huntress. Turning on her heel, Ruby stared agape in horror, as the Atlesian Paladin stepped into view. It had been clearly customized, now sporting the white and red of Adam's White Fang, with the logo of the snarling animal on it's arm. As it reared it's arm back to attack Ruby, she dodged quickly, bursting into a disorienting mess of rose petals before re-appearing and slashing at the mech with Crescent Rose. One, two, three slashes attempted to cut through the metal chassis of the Paladin, but to no avail as it suddenly rammed with the speed and force of a bull, sending the girl flying through the air. Her flight was soon interrupted, however, as she burst through the wall of a nearby building, sending brick and mortar everywhere around her as she laid there on her side, wheezing in pain. Looking up, she saw the Paladin enter view, and she tried to get up. Alas, she felt a sharp pain in her abdomen, bruised skin making it difficult to stand. As she closed her eyes and waited for the attack, a sudden roar of rage suddenly snapped her out of her pain. It was a wordless yell, but the sound of Ember Celica firing was enough as Ruby could see the Paladin topple over, with pieces of machine parts flying everywhere. When she finally gathered the power to stand up, she walked over, only to see Yang continue to punch a soon-to-be motionless mech. When the blonde stood to look to Ruby, a simple exchange of thumbs up was all that was needed before Yang gave one last berserk punch to the machine, then raced through the building to help Ruby.

* * *

A groan left Ruby's lips as she relived this, which caught the attention of Nora and Yang. Yang, especially, looked very happy to see her younger sister, a large smile on her face as she practically bounced in place. Nora was not too far behind, however, as the grin simply never left her face. "Oh, Ruby!" Yang said, walking over to her sister and giving her a gentle hug, "How are you?"

"Been better," Ruby said, the pain subsiding as the warmth and love seemingly radiating from the brawler kept her calm. "Haven't been in pain since yesterday."

"Well, that's good," Nora said, her tone carrying part of Nora's "odd wisdom", so to speak, as she said, "When I was little, and I mean around twelve, so don't go around feeling sorry for me, I once got smacked into a wall while doing combat training with Ren. Whoa! You shoulda seen me, Ruby, let me tell you. I was all curled up in a ball, I could only squeak and lightly groan about how unfair life is. Usual Saturday, really. The only good part was that Ren brought me soup and we would play games that didn't involve me getting out of b-"

The sound of Ruby clearing her throat interrupted Nora, who suddenly realized that she was going off on a tangent and blushed with a more subdued smile. "As fun as that sounds, I need to find Jaune," Ruby simply said, choosing to ignore the smirk Yang gave her. As Yang let loose an "Aww", she soon found that she failed. "Yang, it isn't like that!" Ruby insisted.

But that was all the ammo Yang and Nora needed, as the two walked towards her, with Yang saying "I never said it _was_. Well, I approve. You could do worse than Jaune, that's for sure."

"Yeah," Nora said, somehow having procured a pancake when she rejoined the conversation, "And as a member of Team RNJR, or former member, whatever, I give you express permission to-"

Ruby's embarrassed blush said it all, as she frowned and looked away from them. Yang and Nora looked to each other, as Yang said "Well, I know where he is. He's in that gym, close to the heliport. Could you check in on Weiss and Blake, though? They didn't make it back here."

Nodding, Ruby walked back into her room to get changed. After taking a well deserved shower, she saved time by throwing on the spare clothes she had, which consisted of her uniform from the fight against the Atlesian Paladin from her Beacon days. Leaving the temporary home, which was a military guarded hotel, Ruby first walked into the hospital. Upon walking in and introducing herself, the receptionist told her to go to room 235. Walking up to it, she turned the knob and walked in.

Weiss was still in bed, an IV drip full of blood in her arm, while Blake was laying her head on the same bed, both girls being fast asleep. In Blake's hand was a black, leather-bound book, and on Weiss's bedside table was a vase full of yellow flowers. With that, Ruby quietly crept out of the room, heading off to find Jaune.

* * *

Throughout the interior of the Viridian Gym, with it's green walls and welcoming decor, the sound of a heavy bag getting beaten and smashed could be heard as a Hunstman continued to wail on it, training for something big. The elderly coach behind him watched on, his greying-green hair and goatee showing his age the same as his wrinkles did, while he cleaned the ring behind him with a moist towel. As Jaune continued to wail on the heavy bag with taped fists, he looked around around to see accolades adorning the walls. Headlines of newspapers reading things like "Jack "Green Blur" Viridian retains heavyweight title!" were all that were needed to paint the picture of the old man overseeing his workout. He initially paid no mind to the door opening behind him, but when he glanced and saw Ruby enter, he gripped the heavy bag to stop it before turning to her.

"Ruby! Uh, good morning!." Jaune greeted, walking towards the young Huntress with his arms wide open. The two met in a tight hug, only separating to continue speaking. "I don't remember telling you where I was, though."

Ruby simply smiled and said "You didn't. Yang and Nora told me."

"Ah, gotcha," Jaune said, before turning his attention back to the bag, though not before commenting "Nice outfit."

"Oh, uh, thanks," Ruby said bashfully, "I had it with me at Beacon."

Nodding, Jaune continued hitting the bag, raining down blows that made the red bag sway and swing with power behind each strike. Ruby waited next to the ring, standing next to the old Jack as she watched Jaune continue his exercise. Soon, however, a ringing on his Scroll interrupted him from a nearby bench. Walking over and picking it up, he looked at the number for only a second before answering it. Cinder's broken voice immediately hit his ears, as she asked "J-Jaune?"

"Yeah?" Jaune responded, sitting on the bench as Ruby walked over and took the spot next to him.

"H-Has the…Narrator contacted you, y-yet?" Cinder asked, her voice wavering as she spoke. She was in protective custody per the orders of the Huntsmen and Huntresses, and thus was in a nearby building filled with security detail.

"Not yet. When he does, I'll let you know." Jaune responded, before saying a quiet "Bye" and hanging up, closing the Scroll in his hands.

Ruby cocked her head to the side and asked "Who's "he"?", her hands clasped together as she waited.

As Jaune prepared to respond, a burst of static startled both of them, as he opened his Scroll to find television static with a video call button over it. When the two looked at each other, Ruby wordlessly nodded as Jaune then pressed the button. The familiar scene of Victor Briar's reading corner appeared, this time the fans were able to be heard. There were quite a few of them, but nothing absolutely crazy. While in black and white, that disappeared with another clap as the red eyes of The Narrator looked to the screen as he grinned. "Ah, hello, Spaghetti Arms! Well, I see you had a go at that heavy bag, so maybe you'll get some meat on your bones soon."

Ruby turned to Jaune and asked "How did he know that?", to which Jaune could only look at the screen and ask "Vic, how do you know what's going on right now?"

"Simple, Vomit-Boy!" said The Narrator, who laughed under his breath. Suddenly, his face turned much more serious, his crimson red eyes glowing slightly brighter before he said "It's my Semblance. There is no place that I can view where I can't see _everything_." The crimson returned as he cocked his head to the side, saying "To be more specific, that's why I narrate. My Semblance is the ability to gain true vision, auditory and visual, on most anything. I usually use it for the novels I read on the show. Real fear, anguish, laughter, arousal; it's really quite useful."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that last one. Little too much information." Jaune simply said, also choosing to ignore his moment of seriousness so that he wasn't afraid to focus. "Are you here to tell me about the first Guardian?"

"And me? I'm more than a little curious." Ruby said, as well, leaning over to view the screen.

"But of course!" The Narrator said, "It helps that you can view things the same way. Observe." Cracking open the book, the contents suddenly burst into purple flame as both Ruby and Jaune soon saw themselves looking, hearing, and even smelling a whole new place. It was a casino, with slot machines rolling around them. In front of them was a blackjack table, where a purple suited man sat, shuffling his deck. He had neatly combed hair, a groomed mustache, and wore a blue tie. Suddenly, The Narrator's voice was heard, which no one else but them could even hear. " _His title is "The Gambler",_ " The Narrator said, his voice changing into a more atmospheric tone, deep and deadpan. " _Born Ferris Violeta, The Gambler spent his days conning people out of their hard earned Lien, along with his wife Indi Violeta._ " Right then, a woman in a blue-ish suit walked over to him, handing him a few thousand Lien that was obviously pilfered from somewhere.

As purple flame once again covered Ruby and Jaune's vision, the scene changed to them standing before the familiar sight of green and silver hair at a desk, with a playing card deck in the Gambler's hands. Standing before them was Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black, Cinder's accomplices in the Fall of Beacon. " _One day, however, they did the impossible, yet an impossible that should've stayed that way: they out-conned a con-man._ "

"Alright, see, this is how it goes." Ferris said, his voice gruff and raspy as he spoke to the thief and assassin, "It's simple, pick a card from the deck. If it's the elusive King of Hearts, you win big. If it isn't, I do. Got it?" The nods from both parties was enough, and the Gambler got set to work.

The Narrator's voice played again, saying " _See, The Gambler conned first, and won second, and that was just the order of operations. He has a Semblance that allows him to cheat._ " Just then, the world slowed down as they could see what he did. With a tap of his fingers, the face down King of Hearts card was marked with an eyeball symbol, and with quite a bit of sleight of hand, stealthily hid the card in his sleeve as he continued shuffling. Laying each card face down on the table, Emerald got set to work in choosing which one to pick, or at least, that's what she wanted. With her Semblance active, Emerald merely stood there and rifled through the cards, trying to find the King of Hearts while her illusion pretended to do silent guess work. Indi nodded, her blue bobbing as she did so, and Ferris pulled out the King of Hearts, placing his hand behind his back. With a quick tap of the his finger against the eye, the illusion was dashed away as Emerald stood there, her eyes wide with frustration. Throwing the card towards her, a rigged sharp edge hit her thumb, making her drop each card.

As she stared at the spilled deck, as she could say was "H-How-" before the purple flame changed it again. This time, it appeared to be a cozy house. Snow fell outside the window as Indi counted what seemed like a large sum of money at the couch. In the kitchen, Ferris absentmindedly shuffled the deck at the table.

" _In doing so, and showing off quite the gift, he caught the attention of the Grimmsdottir herself, Salem. And she sent someone to tell him the...good news, as it were._ ", and with that, a knock on the door alerted the wife, who stood up and opened it. In front of her was a man hunched over, his yellow eyes wide as he laughed silently. Suddenly, a scream hit the ears of Ruby and Jaune as his scorpion tail lashed out and struck her down. He rushed forward to meet the Gambler, and without a single word mentioned, the fear won out as the two were brought back to reality.

" _With no choice except death,_ Ferris became the first Guardian, the Gambler, and began to aid Salem in exchange for his survival," said The Narrator, who paused or finished in order to take a sip of his green tea. On the bench, Ruby and Jaune both sat horrified. "So, here's the down low: The Gambler's ability is his upgraded Semblance. He has literal card tricks, and can imbue and enchant them with various powers. Fire, ice, electricity, explosions...you can be seriously fucked up. And with that, I thank Vale and Mistral's network for my primetime slot." he said, tapping an earpiece on his left side before saluting.

"U-Um, right," Jaune said, unsure of what to think as Indi's death by Tyrian's sting burned in his memory, "C-Can I spare him? He's been through a lot."

The Narrator nodded as he sipped his tea before saying "You can, I suppose. But that is another Guardian that will live. It's up to you."

Jaune then deliberated for some time before saying, "Well, can I get some help? I mean, have you seen me?" to which The Narrator nodded.

"I have indeed, Noodles. You can bring Cinder and one friend. Otherwise, civilians have to stay out of it." and with that, and the knowledge that the battles happen the day after, Jaune pocketed his Scroll.

"You going to help me and Cinder?" Jaune asked, standing up from his seat. Ruby also stood, planting her feet firmly on the ground.

"I suppose I can. I may not trust Cinder, but I trust you," Ruby explained, "If you're helping her, so am I. Besides, these Guardians seem dangerous, and if I can stop them, it's one less thing to worry about." And with that, Jaune gulped down a breath as he planned and prepared in his mind for the next day.


	4. IV: Battle: The Gambler

" _Alright, kid. Tomorrow, The Gambler will appear in town to hunt Cinder down. Since Salem's traitor is aiding their protector, he might not curb-stomp her, but you and Ruby...well, just keep an eye on her during the fight._ "

As the rest of the day flew by in a haze (with the only highlight being Weiss being checked out of the hospital and brought to the hotel), the moon hung quietly in the starry sky, shattered as always. In one bed lay a young, tired girl with red and black hair, while in the other, a much more awake blond laid there in worry. Turning to Ruby, Jaune cleared his throat and asked "...Hey, Ruby? You awake?"

"Yeah," she said, turning to face Jaune before sitting up with her legs under the sheets, "I am. Can't sleep?"

Jaune shook his head quickly, a quick "No," leaving his lips as he showed his denial. "I'm...scared. About what's going to happen tomorrow."

"Hmm?" Ruby hummed, adjusting her position under the covers to be more comfortable as she looked at Jaune.

"I mean, this guy's job is killing people like Cinder. She's, like, one of the most powerful people we've ever met, and this guy is apparently worse. I just don't know if we can do it." Jaune elaborates, letting his anxiety show through each word.

Thinking for a moment, the optimistic Ruby says "Well, they're powerful enough to take Cinder, right? Well, it's not just Cinder. We can both fight pretty well, and I don't think this Ferris guy can take us all on like that. Besides, if just one's good enough to solve Salem's problem, why do they need seven?"

Jaune focused on Ruby's words, soaking in each syllable and honestly thinking about their chances. Finally, he says "Well...alright, but I bet he's still really strong. Let's keep our guard up, okay?"

"Alright!" Ruby says, before practically slamming her head onto her pillow and saying "Goodnight, Jaune."

"'Night." was Jaune's only response before he closed his eyes and attempted to sleep. And sleep he did…

* * *

It was dim and _very_ early in the morning, the sky still a very dark blue as the sun slowly rose to take the shattered moon's place. Stood next to large, iron door were Ruby and Jaune, decked out in their travel clothes from their venture to Mistral. Sand softly kicked up and the younger Huntress tapped her foot impatiently, while Jaune sat on the sidewalk, his Scroll open to see something. A new text message showed, Yang being the one sending the message, which said " _We're all out of the way. Go get him, Jaune._ " After a quick explanation to the rest of the group (which took a fair bit out of the last few hours of darkness), Jaune and Ruby got Yang to hide everyone in the hotel, and thus out of the way of the conflict.

Suddenly, the door opened, revealing the disheveled Cinder Fall in all her fallen glory. She was no longer wearing her red and orange dress, instead dressed in a very simple black shirt and grey skirt that was likely provided to her by the Military who had custody over her. The sleeves were long, which still hid her missing hand, and her bangs still covered her grey eyepatch as if she were ashamed to hide her injury. Any anger bubbling up in Jaune's heart gave way to pity, as she looked so far removed from her seductive and manipulative roots. " _She looks nothing like she did._ " Jaune thought, as he turned to Ruby. Her brow was furrowed and her gaze showed suspicion, but when Cinder looked to her, her remaining eye full of worry, Ruby softened up.

"Cinder, let me get something straight," Ruby began, "Jaune told me you were forced into what you did. Is that true?" Her tone was questioning, though not confrontational.

Cinder looked to the pavement, and gasped out a "Y-Yes...Without Salem, I...would be dead." Ruby let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in, taking a step towards the girl.

"I will never forgive you for Beacon...for Pyrrha," Ruby said, her voice still not full of malice, which surprised Cinder, "But...Jaune says that he thinks you can change. If that's true, I know you can. I can't bring myself to let what you did just slide...but I don't have to hate you, and neither does Jaune. Maybe one day, I can even call you a friend…" Her voice trailed off, and what she said made Cinder's head whip towards her. " _Always an optimist._ " Jaune mused in his thoughts.

"H-How can you ever…?" Cinder said, too stunned to go through the pain of finishing her words.

"Don't get me wrong," Ruby explained, "As I've said multiple times, Pyrrha was my friend and I can't let that slide. But if what you said is true, you were just a pawn in her little game. Like I was saying, maybe one day I can call you a friend, but right now, I still see you as nothing more then another murderer. I need to trust you, I need to _believe_ you. And that means helping us stop Salem and these "Guardian" guys. Okay?"

Cinder nodded, and quietly said, in a voice as clear as it was in her prime, "I won't let you down."

"You better not!" Ruby said, "I would hate to do some grand speech only to get shot in the back. And not even by you, if I'm being honest." At that, Cinder let herself grin a little, and to her surprise, Ruby actually grinned back, if only at her own joke and less at the levity from the mage.

Turning to Jaune, Cinder breathed in before saying, "D-Do you...feel the same?"

Caught off guard by the question, the blond knight thought deeply about his response, knowing he had a very limited amount of time to answer before The Gambler arrived. Standing up, he explained "Pyrrha was closer to me then I even realized. It's not impossible, but it's not just trust or proof. I need to know, for a fact, that you're nothing like the Cinder that took her away from me. I need to look at you, and not even see you do it. Like I said, it's possible. But it's going to take a lot more than belief before I'm ready to move on. Got it?"

Nodding, Cinder said "Understood," as she seemed to show remorse and regret through her eye. As Ruby and Jaune walked off into town, Cinder walked with them, keeping a ways away from them as they looked through the front gate. They finished their conversation at the right time, it had seemed, as walking through the town's front gate stood the man (at least formerly) known as Ferris Violeta, still wearing his purple suit. He stopped walking and let a devilish grin emerge from his lips as he reached inside his coat pocket. As the three prepared to draw their weapons, The Gambler pulled out five playing cards and showed them to Jaune, Ruby, and Cinder, all of whom now had their weapons out. Knowing that a dangerous fight was going down, the citizens all turned tail and ran, with the elite guard wanting to back the Huntsman and Huntresses up, only to feel a strange urge to run as they came close to The Gambler's perimeter.

"So," The Gambler said, his voice raspy and deep as though he smoked cigars made with sandpaper for years on end, "there's the Traitor, a girl with Silver Eyes, and a...noodle with armor?" At that, Jaune lowered his stance and a look of exasperation plastered itself on his face. Ruby snickered at this, while Cinder looked at Jaune with an amused glare. "Well, at least I know it's a fair fuckin' fight," he snarked, before taking a step closer. "How about a wager? I can kill all three of you with one hand." he said, before pulling out a sixth card and adding it to his deck. His sadistic grin didn't lessen, in fact it seemed to grow with the passage of time.

Before Jaune could even ask about what would happen if he won, The Gambler throws one of his cards out towards the Hunters, the golden and glowing icon of an explosion emblazoned on it. The card stabs into the ground and, immediately realizing what it is, Jaune yells "OUT OF THE WAY!" before the three dive for cover. The explosion is large and a brilliant orange, blowing a crater straight out of the ground as it kicks dust out into a cloud of ash. While Jaune is distracted, The Gambler rushes forward at him, managing to kick him across the face before clamoring on top of him and beginning to rain down blows. Punch after punch connects with Jaune's face, taking small but numerous chunks out of his Aura, before Jaune's sheath whacks The Gambler across the face. When he stood up, Jaune's sword was back in his hand, which he slashes across Ferris's body, taking more Aura. He connected three slashes, but as he raises Crocea Mors over his head, hs opponent gains a second wind, as before the blade connects, he claps it into his grasp before headbutting Jaune, knocking him to the ground.

Just then, a Magnum-sized Dust round whizzed past The Gambler's head, causing him to turn his attention to Ruby, who then racks the bolt back. He pulled out, and threw, a card with what appears to be a sigil of a puddle with bubbles over it towards Ruby, who quickly ducked it. The wall behind her, however, began glowing green before it starts melting right through the wood. No splinters or debris emerges as the acid burns a wooden beam apart, which then falls right towards Ruby. Even with the aura tanking that, the acid continued to burn more and more debris towards her, while she sat none the wiser. "RUBY!" Jaune yelled out, which makes the sniper turn to see the debris fall. Using her speed Semblance, she escaped the rubble in a flurry of rose petals, but before either of the other two can attack, a Dust spear suddenly launched itself at The Gambler, catching his jacket and flinging him straight through a brittle building. It looked similar to the attack Cinder did during the Dust shop robbery, which Ruby confirmed when she turned to Cinder, who had her arm outstretched, her hands and remaining eye glowing a vibrant orange.

Slamming through wall after wall, the spear eventually got stuck in the wall of a nearby, three story house, with The Gambler following suit, his jacket ripped away in the ensuing chaos. Rolling on the ground with a thud, he slowly stood up and looked around. In front of the building sat a small clearing, with some stray crates and boxes stacked around. As he heard footsteps approaching, Ferris rushed over to the crates, hiding behind one and waiting. Turning the opposite corner, Jaune and Ruby stopped at the clearing, looking around the area for the Guardian. Just as he reached for another card in his hand, the feeling of a metal point derailed his train of thought. When he turned around, Cinder was right there, her swords pointed to the back of his neck which left him at an impasse. "H-Hey!" Cinder choked out, which got the attention of the other two. With weapons drawn, they made their way to The Gambler, who stood there, thinking. Looking over the other two, he let go of the card he had a hold of, which floated uselessly to the ground. Ferris raised his hands with a smile, as the card gained a golden sigil of what appeared to be a cloud. Suddenly, a cloud of smoke burst forth from the card, blinding the three Hunters. As they coughed in the gas, the sound of a door opening and closing gave them enough of a clue. "R-Ruby." Jaune coughed out, and Ruby burst from the smoke in a sea of rose petals.

" _The things I do for that witchy broad,_ " The Gambler thought, clamoring up the stairs in an attempt to gain a new vantage point. As soon as that thought crossed his mind, rose petals began floating in through an open window, with some scattering across the floor. Suddenly, bursting forth from the petals, Ruby launched herself from them and slashed him with her scythe in his legs, sending him up into the air. Ruby followed up with several more slashes in the air, juggling him with Crescent Rose, before finishing with a downward strike that sent him into a nearby crate, splintering wood across the floor.

Coughing slightly, The Gambler quipped "Speaking of witchy broads…", before rolling over the floor, scrambling to his feet. Pulling out his fourth card, The Gambler whipped his hand out, sending a card with a sigil of fire towards the young Huntress, which sticks itself in the wall. It activated instantly, a sea of burning fire taking the wall as embers danced across the sky. Ruby, having dodged the initial blast, raised Crescent Rose up to attack, but The Gambler had rushed forwards in the chaos. Wrapping his hand around Crescent Rose's barrel, he swept up and kicked the reaper in the face, causing her to lose her grip, as she smack into the ground, the fire dangerously close to her body. Dropping Crescent Rose on the ground, he grabbed Ruby by the hair and began to slam her skull against the ground, taking large enough chunks out of her Aura to give him the edge. Eventually, enough of her Aura broke that the repeated slams broke the skin on her forehead, blood leaking out of her face into a twisted, crimson mask.

Picking her head up by her hair, The Gambler seemed poised to slam her head into the fire, but before he could, a sharp pain in his side caused him to drop her near the blaze. His now broken Aura sparked across his finger as he looked down to see an arrow, made of purple obsidian, jutting out from his body, near his hip. As he wrapped his fingers around the arrow with the intent to pull it out, he was stopped by a sudden kick to the face, which sent him flailing back to the wall behind him with a satisfying crack. As he regained his balance, he heard something drip to the floor below him. With two fingers pressed to his now-broken nose, he found blood pouring out of his nostrils onto the wooden floor, and his blood began to boil.

Before anything else could happen, the blade of Crocea Mors pressed itself against his throat, it's wielder having a look of violent anger take over the majority of his features. "Cinder," he said, his voice eerily calm, "get Ruby back to the hotel." Cinder nodded and walked over to Ruby, pulling her up and beginning to walk her out of the building. The fire raged behind Jaune and The Gambler, with wood and stone beginning to fall from now-damaged supports.

"I don't want to kill you," Jaune said, making his statement clear by getting his blade closer to Ferris's jaw, "but I won't let you kill anyone I care about...or Cinder, for that matter. How about, you leave and no one has to die?"

The Gambler chuckled at that, his voice trembling from the pain, before he clutched his nose and said "Kid...I appreciate your values...but the fight ain't over, see?" Rushing a hand under his jacket, he smacked a card against Jaune's nose, which glowed blue before the blond was suddenly encased in vibrant ice. Looking at the sculpture in a mockingly critical light, his fingers under his chin like he was in thought, The Gambler slid out from under Jaune's sword and began to back away from the frozen Jaune before weighing his options. " _He could unfreeze before the fire gets him...in fact, I think he will. If I chase after Cinder, well, my Aura's gone, so that's out. Leaving...escape."_

Rushing up to the stairs in a mad dash, his suspicions were confirmed as the ice Jaune was trapped in began to crack and snap. Once up to the third floor, he could hear the ice shatter apart as Jaune's footsteps echoed through the building, eventually growing closer to the stairway. Leaning against the wall of the top floor, The Gambler drew his final card, with the sigil of what looked like breaking glass burning on top of the illustration of the enigmatic King of Hearts. As Jaune made his way up each step, the Guardian slowly counted up, each number being another second to prepare. "One...two...three," he whispered under his breath, as he could tell Jaune was getting closer. "Four...five...six…" he inched away from the door. "Seven...Eight...Nine…" Jaune was right outside the door, his hand turning the knob as The Gambler lied in wait. Finally, Jaune opened the door and, not seeing him, took a few cautious steps forward. Creeping out behind him, The Gambler shouted out his last number, flinging the card out at the same time.

"TEN!"

The card flew out and struck Jaune and, within seconds, his Aura seemed to shatter. Lightning danced across his body, and he felt less powerful, like a part of his being faded away. In the confusion, Ferris rushed towards him and punched him in the face, sending him sprawling to the floor which was teetering on the edge due to the flames below. Picking up Crocea Mors, The Gambler walked towards Jaune and, with no hesitation, swung the blade right at Jaune's face. The blond Huntsman raised his shield up in time to stop a decapitation, but the blow merely redirected. He felt searing pain across his face, and he turned towards a window to find his cheek and nose sliced open, a vicious cut now bleeding over his features. "I wouldn't be so worried," The Gambler says, making Jaune turn to face his opponent, "I mean, after all, chicks dig scars. Just a matter of you surviving to meet any." He swung the sword again, only for Jaune to then block it against his shield. Blade and shield were practically locked into a standstill, as The Gambler drew closer, his teeth bared in a twisted grin.

"Just back off!" Jaune yelled, trying his best to push his own blade back, "I don't want to kill you, y'know! Just please stop this!"

"Are you afraid?" Ferris mockingly asked, the blade of Crocea Mors going dangerously close to his head and shoulders. "I won't just stop, Mr. Arc. There's still the matter of Cinder Fall, after all."

"How do you know my name?" Jaune asked, pushing back against his own sword with a single footstep, his hand gripping the Guardian's wrist as he continued to fight against his attacker's strength.

"I was told it by someone…'s not important, now!" said The Gambler. With his own strength on display, The Gambler attempted to overpower Jaune, but before he could, Jaune gave one last mighty shove. With the shield over his eyes, he waited for another attack. But it never came.

Jaune looked over his shield to find his opponent, with the blade of Crocea Mors dripping with blood. There was very fresh, new gash across Ferris's throat, with the familiar crimson essence leaking out as if his body were a barrel full of the liquid. He stood there, dumbfounded, before the rapid blood loss finally caused The Gambler to sink to the floor, down on his knees. Dropping the blade to the ground, he gave Jaune one last look before falling and landing on his back, his mouth still open in shock. Jaune gave the corpse a shocked gait, before he picked up Crocea Mors and went down the stairs. While the inferno raged on, there was still somewhere he could go safely. Thus, exiting the door, Jaune had only a few seconds before he himself sank down to his knees and hands. " _I-It was just an accident…_ " Jaune thought, feeling sick from the experience, " _I didn't mean t-to…_ " Closing his eyes and letting all his thoughts scream at him, he clutched his head in sorrow.

" _I need to get back to the hotel,_ " he thought, " _Maybe I can talk to someone...a-and they can help m-me._ " Standing up, he began to make his way back to the hotel, with each step heavier than the last.


	5. V: Painful Aftermath

**Sorry this took so long! I lose focus easily, and since chapters are getting longer, it's easier for me to stop with no progress. I'll try to focus more time on this and my other stories in the future.**

* * *

" _Speaking of witchy broads…"_

The words echoed through the darkness that lasted behind the injured Ruby's eyes, sending her squirming as those same words brought a throbbing pain through her skull, as though it were caught in the tight grip of a vice. As she stared further into the black abyss, she swore she could still feel the hard impacts of her skull against the wooden floor of the house she hoped was abandoned. Suddenly, a light appeared at the end of the deep, dark tunnel, and she felt her body lurch as she was pulled towards it, and the abyss was replaced with a void.

As she slowly opened her eyes to the light, she saw it fade away into what looked like a tiled ceiling in some building, the white of her vision fading away to beige. Turning her head to the right, she saw the bed that Jaune had stayed in during their stay. Realization set in, as she tried to sit up, before a pounding pain in her skull caused her to lower herself back to her mattress. As she groaned in pain, her eyes closed from the agony, she held a hand up to her wounded forehead, only to feel her fingers and palm rub against cloth bandages. As Ruby opened her eyes, she also turned her gaze to the left. There, in the corner, was Cinder, who sat in a chair with her hands on her lap. "C-Cinder?" Ruby said, her eyes squinted as the pain, at least temporarily, ceased as she removed her hand.

Cinder's gaze turned downwards, her hands clutching her dress in shaking fists full of silk. Her left eye burned as her mind filled itself with thoughts of anger and pain. " _Just kill her now!_ " Cinder thought, her conscience turning against her. " _No one will miss her! Shoot her in the head, snap her neck, or just burn the bitch, I don't care. She deserves death for what happened! For what she did for me._ "

"T-Thank you for saving me," Ruby quietly said, slinking back down to the mattress. And like that, Cinder's tirade ceased. Ruby was showing gratitude, and if Cinder's wide open mouth and shocked gaze was any indication, it was gratitude undeserved. "But why d-did you save me?" Ruby asked, "I thought...well…"

Cinder thought back to the screams of murderous intent her inner voice brought forth just seconds earlier, and swiftly grew to regret every single word. "I-I...I want...to prove this…to you. To...everyone."

"Really?" Ruby asked, curiosity apparent in her tone.

Cinder pressed her fingers to her throat as she lowered her voice down in volume, speaking quietly enough that her smooth, seductive tones replaced the scratchy cry she had. "Yes," she began, quickly making sure Ruby could hear her. From the subtle look in her silver eyes, it seemed like she could. "I have my strength back. You all saw that. If I wanted to kill you, I would. Trust me, I have some _very_ good reasons to," she continued. At those last few words, Ruby's eyes widened as her fingers held the top of her comforter and blanket. "But I want to change. I want to have my life back."

Ruby's features visibly relaxed as she let loose a sigh of relief, her breath shaky as she closed her eyes yet again. "That's...good," Ruby said, breathing in and out slowly as the pain once again began to subside. "That's a big jump, especially for you."

"D-Does that mean…" Cinder said, the weight of each word forcing her to trail off. That little voice in her head spoke again, a chilling reminder of who she once was speaking in the voice she used to have. " _Of course not!"_ she thought, " _You ruined everything! You killed her friends! Penny Polendina, Pyrrha Nikos, everyone you've made suffer because of your actions! Why-"_

Her thoughts were interrupted by Ruby's somewhat slow response, as she laid on her bed and contemplated her words. "It's...too early to say," Ruby finally said. "This was only the first fight, and all you did was fight that guy, and save me…"

As Ruby paused, Cinder's breath slowed to a crawl as her gaze drew downward. "But," Ruby finally said, causing Cinder to snap her gaze back to Ruby's silver eyes. "You _saved_ me. After all I did. I mean, you're missing an eye and your hand!"

Another pregnant pause filled the air as Cinder looked down at her left hand, only finding a void where it used to be in its place. She could still feel the sensation of squeezing her fingers, the phantom pain that filled her whole body on that day still ebbing away in her wrist. She didn't need to confirm that her eye was gone, as the void covered whatever vision she could salvage, as though the eye were simply closed. "Look," Ruby continued, "Like I said, it's far too early. I mean, maybe you're just waiting for a time when you can go and just kill all of us." Cinder nodded at this, her right hand clutching her dress as her lips pursed in thought. "But you're on the right track, and this a big step in the right direction."

"W-Why?" Cinder said, her yellow hued eye peering right into Ruby's silver ones, "Why...are you giving me...a chance?"

Ruby simply smiled warmly as she said "Well...no person's a monster. People just...do bad things." She felt more comfortable in the bed as the pain from her wound fully ebbed away, letting her sit up in her bed.

"That's...quite the optimistic worldview," Cinder noted, frowning as she once again turned her gaze away. "I...just can't...see it...at least for…me."

"Well," Ruby said, "That's why you're improving, right? So that you _can_ be redeemed?"

Cinder simply shook her head and quietly said "I...guess…"

"Does, uh, everyone know you're here?" Ruby asked, shifting uncomfortably on the mattress. " _If someone saw her carry me in...Oh crap!_ "

A sigh escaped Cinder's lips as she said "Only one of...them. I guess...the rest are...waiting...She was the...one with the orange...hair. Nora Valkyrie?"

" _Oh crap, it was Nora?!_ " Ruby thought, her eyes quickly widening as she gasped out a nervous breath. "Did...anything happen?"

While the quick shake of Cinder's head answered the question already, there will still details missing. Breathing in a hard gasp of air, Cinder said "No...she looked at...me...she was angry….and concerned."

"Okay," Ruby said, "I'll call them in and we can talk about you...wait, where's Jaune?" Those last few words raised her voice slightly as she looked back to Jaune's empty back, worry growing in her heart as the possibilities raged through her mind.

"I...don't know," Cinder said, and Ruby instantly felt her heart sink into her chest as the mental images flashed before her eyes. Jaune laid there, bleeding, and the very thought crossing her mind sent a cold chill down her spine. "He told me to help you...and you were...right next to Ferris's flames...I just had to leave him there…"

Before anyone could say anything more, the door slammed open as Nora rushed in, Ren right behind her with a neutral expression. "Ruby!" the energetic girl shouted, sprinting forward with an unrivaled speed as she wrapped her arms around the younger Huntress, "Me and Renny heard you outside. I'm so glad to see that you're up!"

"H-Hey, Nora," Ruby gasped out, the girl's arms tight around her torso, "C-Can't breathe!"

"Oh, sorry," Nora replied, "I was just so...worried. Ooh, I'll come get Yang! She's been nervous, obviously, since you are her sister, though I heard that your mom isn't her mom from birth, making you half-sisters. Which begs the question of quarter-sisters and the like, I mean, do _those_ exist? It would be co-"

During Nora's tirade as to the existence of "quarter-sisters", she whipped her head around the room in her excitement, only for her eyes to meet Cinder's own. Orange met turquoise as Nora's mood suddenly dropped, her smile quickly fading to a stunned frown as her eyebrows furrowed. Again, both anger and trepidation filled her features, as while Nora's overall expression seemed to burst with rage, her eyes showed off a cautiousness that Cinder could feel was expected. "What are _you_ doing here?" she said, venom and anger dripping out of her voice as she stepped back, her hand instinctively reaching back to grab the idle Magnhild pinned to the back of her skirt.

"Wait!" Ruby cried out, "Don't attack her!"

"And why not?" Nora snapped, as she continued to wrap her hand around the disabled weapon. "After all she did-"

"That's what we need to talk about," Ruby explained, "I need everyone in here to _talk_ about Cinder."

"Like hell we will!" Nora said, "Tell her, Ren!"

Ren, who had been silent and still as he looked at what was happening, walked towards Nora with calm, easy steps, as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Nora," he patiently said, "If Ruby doesn't want you hurting her, she must have a reason."

"But-" Nora tried to interrupt, but Ren simply kept speaking.

"Let's, at the very least, hear her out," Ren explained, "It must be important if she can go from "I don't trust her at all" to "Let's talk about her" in about a day, right?"

After a second of thought, Nora's features relaxed as she released her grip of her weapon, her gaze peering down to the floor as she said "Alright…" Pointing to Cinder, she looked up and said "Don't you _dare_ try anything!", before her left hand went towards her back pocket. Pulling out her Scroll, she went to the "Local Messages" section before firing off a message to Weiss, Blake, Yang, and Jaune. As she typed in Jaune's name to include him, Nora's eyes widened as she turned back to the injured Ruby, who was sitting up in the bed.

Silver eyes met worried turquoise ones as Ruby said "What is it?"

"Where's Jaune?" Nora said, looking back around the room, as if he were simply hiding from sight.

"He's...he's still not back," Ruby said, sliding onto her feet as she stood from the bed. "I hope he's okay," she continued, frowning as worry danced across her eyes.

Nora looked back towards the room's door, and in a flash of a second, made up her mind. "We'll go look for him," Nora said, raising an excited fist in the air, "Right, Renny?" The stoic Huntsmen merely nodded, and thus the pair made their way back to the door. Before passing through the still opened threshold, the excitable girl turned back to Cinder with narrowed eyes and said "If anything's happened to her by the time we get back, your legs won't be the only bones I break."

" _If anything happens, I can break your spine._ " Cinder thought, though she refrained from pointing that fact out as that might only ruin things further. Instead, she nodded and leaned back in her chair, placing her remaining hand upon her lap as Nora and Ren walked out, the door shutting behind them.

* * *

Blood dripped onto the asphalt as Jaune numbly sat in the alley, so close to the hotel before the pain weighing on both his heart and the gruesome gash in his face forced him to sit. Every time he closed his eyes, he could still see the moment left The Gambler's eyes, which left his hands shaking. A chime on his Scroll brought him back to cold reality, and as he pulled it out, he could see nothing but static and a "Play" button on the screen. Clicking the arrow, Jaune was brought back to the reading room of one Victor "The Narrator" Briar, who was on his couch with a coffee mug in his hands. The sounds of the crowd cheering were much louder this time, showing just how popular he really was. Looking up, color faded in on the previously black and white visual, and he smiled at the camera, seeming to stare right into Jaune's eyes. His smile faded as he looked, his gaze obviously crossing his wounds. "Wow," he said, "You look like hammered shit."

"You know, that's bugged me for a bit," Jaune noted, his voice cracking as he distracted himself from his trauma, "Didn't you say this was a kid's show? Like "Hello, kiddies" or something like that. So…"

"That," The Narrator began to explain, "Is because my show films in Vacuo, and due to planetary...garbage, it means that Mistral is usually airing their primetime stuff when my actual show airs. I'm off the air right now, which is why only you are noticing this."

Jaune nodded, before looking down to the pavement so as to keep trying to forget. "You killed him, didn't ya?" Vic said, which tore down that plan rather quickly. "I guess it makes sense. You do want to protect your friends, so-"

"It was an accident," Jaune sharply replied, "A-And besides, you said I didn't have to!"

"And you don't," Vic calmly said, "But that doesn't mean they stop, Jaune. If they want, then they can recover, train up, and slaughter you the next time you meet. So, yeah, you can save 'em, but if they're vengeful pricks, it won't do much."

Jaune gulped down a breath, the blood still uncomfortably running down his face as he sat. Victor noticed this, and said "Listen, bud. I'll just leave you alone. I can tell this hurts ya. Just be with your friends, and I'll call you when the next Guardian shows up. Buh-bye."

As the picture faded to static, Jaune could hear footsteps approaching, followed by a loud cry of "JAUNE!" before a blur of pink suddenly tackled him. Looking up, he could see Nora's smiling face instantly fade as she leaned away from her friend. "Jaune...what happened?" she asked, while holding her hand out for him to grab. Gripping her hand tightly, Jaune stood up, which let Nora see the slash better. From the bridge of his nose to the end of his left cheek, a deep gash was cut through, blood dripping out like someone had scratched a tank of water.

"Remember what he told us?" Ren said, holding his Scroll up to text Ruby and the rest, "He was off fighting Salem's Guardian."

"Oh, Jaune," Nora said, concern etched onto her features as her hand instinctively caressed his cheek. "What happened?"

Stumbling away from her, Jaune said "I'll tell you...back at the hotel," his voice cracking as though the very thought was too painful. The distinctive ping of a text being sent told Nora that Ren had given a status report, and so the three walked to the hotel, both Ren and Nora trying their best to help him on the way.

* * *

* _bing_ *

" _Jaune is injured, presumably by that Guardian. He seems fine, but he is wounded. We're on our way now._ "

Once that text reached the Scrolls of Team RWBY, they all seemed concerned in some way. Blake, though still calm, raised her eyebrows upon seeing the message, Yang, who had already set down a glass of tea that she fixed for Ruby, had obvious concern in her eyes as she sympathetically looked at her younger sister, even Weiss was concerned in some way, as she brought a hand to her mouth and her breathing slowed. Ruby had the worst reaction, though. Finally standing on her own two feet, she stared at the message as her eyes widened and all the color seemed to drain from her features. She found it difficult to swallow as her breathing quickened, and her blood ran colder.

"Ruby," Yang said, her flesh hand reaching up to grasp her sister's shoulder, "Ren said he's fine, so let's just see what's going on."

"B-But-" Ruby said.

"It's not healthy to worry when we don't know what's happening," Weiss interrupted, "Your sister's right. Ren said that he seemed fine, so let's see how hurt he is before we start freaking out. Just take a deep breath and wait."

Ruby slowly sat back down on her bed and breathed in deeply, her eyes closed as she slowly calmed down. As a cold breath left Ruby's mouth, Blake said "If it was anything serious, either Ren or Nora would have called by now."

Out in the hallway, listening intently as she stood by the door, Cinder's arms were crossed as she thought about what the injury they were referring to could be. The visual of the redheaded champion flashed through her mind again, recalling her last moments upon that tower with stunning clarity. She could still see the exact moment the arrow pierced her opponent's flesh, and the formerly satisfying victory slowly whittled itself away until she could only see it as a cruel reminder of her sins. Looking to her left, she could already see the mess of blond hair down the hall, and once she saw the slash across his features, any thought of the past faded away.

Back in the room, Ruby calmly said "Yeah, you're right...I just can't help but be worried, y'know?" Carefully sipping a glass of tea graciously fixed by her older sister and her partner, she continued with "I-I mean, we _were_ going against someone strong, so it's-"

Interrupting her was Cinder opening the door, before moving to her right to get out of the way. Nora walked in first, her face worried as she lead Ren and Jaune in. Ren had his arm around Jaune's shoulders, leading the scarred boy into the room. As soon as Ruby saw the bloody gash across his nose and cheek, her heart sank as the injured boy was walked to his bed, shuffling to it like a mindless zombie. Blake looked at the wounded young man with a stunned expression, her amber eyes taking in every centimeter of the gash, while Yang looked more at the brutality, the amount of blood that had spilled to his chin having caught her off guard. Even Weiss seemed disturbed, quickly getting up from her seat and retrieving a spare tissue she had from her pocket, before sitting on the bed next to him and quickly wiping his face clean as the tissue quickly stained red. "We're going to need to get him to a hospital," Ren calmly said, "It looks like he may need stitches."

"Then why did you just bring him here?" Blake asked, her tone quiet, yet incredulous.

"He said he'd talk to us about what happened here," Nora said, "And he walked himself here instead of the hospital. And when Ren started helping him, he just kept trying to walk here."

"Jaune..." Ruby said, her words trailing off as concern washed away any other inflection in her voice, as she looked at her injured friend. Jaune's eyes seemed distant, and it seemed like silence would continue to envelop the room.

And envelop the room it did, until Jaune muttered something under his breath that no one could hear correctly. "Hey, Jaune?" Yang asked, "Could you speak up a little?"

Again, he muttered something under his breath, though the word "killed" audibly rang through. "Jaune?" Weiss asked, her delicate hands reaching for his shoulder in comfort. When he leaned away from her touch, she said "I know I haven't been...the kindest person, but that doesn't mean you can't tell us what happened."

As he finally looked into Weiss's blue eyes, he peered around the room and saw his friends' concerned glances. With that, the dam he had built up to protect himself from his actions finally collapsed, and tears began pouring out as his hands covered his eyes, sobs leaving him as nothing could hold back his sheer outpour of emotions. Without even thinking, Ruby got up and walked over to his bed, before wrapping her arms around Jaune and holding him close. Despite his own thoughts screaming at him not to, he first said "P-Please don't be mad...I'm so sorry…"

"I don't know what I can be mad about if you don't tell me what happened," Ruby pointed out, rubbing comforting circles over his back in an attempt to calm him down.

"I-I…" Jaune nervously sobbed out, before he gained the resolve to finally say it. "I...I killed him."

And like that, the air seemed to be sucked out of the room. No one reacted, and Jaune could only guess it was out of disgust. Anger. Vile hatred for the act. And all he could then is let out more tears, the crushing weight of his actions finally being made clear.

"...W-What?" Ruby said, leaning away from the hug as she tried to look into Jaune's eyes, to no avail as he shied away from her silver gaze.

"I-It was just an accident! I-I didn't m-mean to-" Jaune cried out, refusing to finish the sentence as Ferris's blood entered his mind again. He expected to be kicked out. He expected the same treatment he had given Cinder, the same treatment _everyone_ gave Cinder. Instead, Ruby went back into the hug, holding him tighter as her head rested on his shoulder. He finally allowed himself to return the hug, holding her close as his sniffling sobs slowed. Ruby felt a warmth build in her chest at the action, and she blushed slightly.

"Jaune," Ruby said in a comforting tone, "Please...tell us what happened."

Jaune leaned away from Ruby and cleared his throat. "Well, after you left, we kept...we kept fighting. He used this card that froze me-"

"He uses cards?" Weiss asked, dropping the tissue into a nearby trash bin.

"He _used_ cards," Jaune corrected, to which Weiss's reaction was to clear her throat and nod. "He froze me and ran upstairs to the building we were in. When I thawed out, I chased after him, and he broke my Aura, which caused…" Jaune continued, interrupting to gesture to the slashed flesh, which, as close as it was, made Ruby feel nauseous upon looking at it.

"He caused it with Crocea Mors, and he tried to kill me with it. I blocked with my shield...and I pushed back at the wrong time." Jaune finished, his last words indicating what happened.

"That must have been terrible," Blake sympathetically said.

Yang raised her hand up and said "So, where is his...his body?", clearly uncomfortable with the words leaving her lips.

"Probably still in the building we fought in," Jaune replied, "It's on fire, so…"

"You guys lit a building on fire?!" Nora cried out, clearly surprised to hear that such a thing had transpired.

Ruby looked back at Jaune, and got a familiar glint in her eyes. The kind of spark she had whenever she would lead her team at Beacon. "How about we go the hospital, get you patched up, and we can talk from there? I've wanted to talk to everyone about Cinder, so it might be a good spot."

Jaune looked into her eyes and nodded, and was immediately hoisted up to his unsteady feet, Ren helping Ruby as he was lead to the door, with footsteps behind him. As he left the room, Cinder was right there, her eye wide as she had heard everything. As she began walking with them, Jaune closed his eyes and simply walked with everyone, already able to see the white, sterile hospital rooms in the town in his mind.


	6. VI: The First Step

" _No detrimental effects on your long term health…_ "

Jaune's gaze snapped back over to the doctor, clipboard and pen in hand, after he had been lost in his thoughts. Raising his own hand up, he said "Sorry, could you say that again?", not hearing all of what was said. After being admitted into the local hospital of Hotaru, the town they were staying at, Jaune was immediately brought in for treatment. Now, with stitches having sealed the wound, he laid in bed and began thinking again. " _What will they say when they hear the details of what happened to Ferris? What are they going to say about all this? ...What would Pyrrha say about all this?_ " he thought, which unfortunately drowned out his doctor's words about his injuries.

The doctor, a kindly young woman with coffee-toned hair and hazel eyes to match named Dr. Russet, simply smiled and held up her own hand. "Oh, no, I'm sorry," Dr. Russet politely said, "I forgot that whatever happened may be distracting you. Anyway, I was saying that it's projected that there won't be any long term effects on your health. Sadly, there will be scarring from your wound, though I don't know how bad it will be."

Jaune nodded, glumly saying "Got it," as he lowered his head back to the pillow of his hospital bed. The room was completely white, stark silence accompanying the sterile visuals. It almost felt claustrophobic and isolated, like the walls were bound to close in on him.

"If I may ask, Mr. Arc, how did you receive those wounds?" Dr. Russet asked, curiosity apparent in her voice as her eyes glanced over his freshly stitched wound. Her fingers tapped the bottom of the clipboard as she kept glancing over the chart, clearly awaiting an answer from the Huntsmen.

Jaune eyes squinted as he peered down, not wanting to look the good doctor in the eyes because of the haunting image that still flashed through his eyes. "I...I, um," he began, his hands shaking as he clenched them into fists, gripping the bedsheet and gritting his teeth just to try to stop thinking about it in some way.

Dr. Russet seemed to understand, leaning down to place a comforting hand on his shoulder, and saying "Don't worry. If you can't tell me, you don't have to." After a second, she rose back up and looked at Jaune's stitches. "Well, the wound seems clean. Keep an eye on it for a couple of weeks; if something gets infected, come see me right away. Be careful when taking showers so as to not damage the stitches, though you should also try to keep them from getting dirty. Other than that, you can go. Not much else to do."

Jaune nodded and rose to his feet, before slowly walking over to the white door. He breathed in nervously, feeling the air catch in his throat, before opening the door and stepping forward into the hallway. It took not three seconds before he suddenly found himself stumbling back from a sudden weight hitting him, rose petals following behind her in a trail leading straight to him.

"Jaune!" Ruby said, hugging her friend tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay."

Jaune hugged back and let himself smile a little, saying "Ruby, you knew I was just going in for stitches."

Ruby hopped out of the embrace, her cheeks red as she planted her feet on the ground. She began rubbing her arm anxiously, stammering around her words as she tried to look him in the eye. "I-I just don't like seeing you hurt, t-that's all," she explained, "I mean, between your wound and what happened with the Gambler-"

She stopped talking when the sound of the first Guardian's title seemed to suck the blood away from Jaune's face, his cheeks turning pale and accentuating the stitching that lined most of his features. "Oh my God!" Ruby exclaimed, "I'm so, so sorry. I-I didn't mean to just remind you about that."

There was a pregnant pause in the air after that, the awkwardness of the situation keeping their voices silent as neither knew what to say next. Eventually, however, Jaune shut his eyes and let out a shaky sigh, trying not to let the image of blood enter the dark abyss of his sight. "Let's just get home, okay? We still need to figure out what to do with Cinder."

"Are you sure?" Ruby said, stepping forward with concern in her tone. "This is really bothering you, and talking about Cinder might jus-"

Jaune interrupted her by opening his eyes, quickly saying "Ruby, she's either going to be in a cell or with us. You're trying to reform her, and I'm trying to make sure she doesn't die! Let's get her situation out of the way, first."

Ruby placed her hand on Jaune's shoulder, her fingers shaking from the contact with his skin. "And then will you try and get some help for this? What happened must have been painful, and I…" She trailed off, unsure of how to press on. Her heart was hammering in her chest, and her cheeks were burning from the mere sensation of contact. After a second, she finally said "I-I just really don't like seeing you in pain, Jaune."

The seconds seemed to tick by for ages, but eventually, Jaune wrapped his arms around his younger friend and pulled her into another hug. "I promise," Jaune said, sincere and calm as he kept his embrace with Ruby. The warmth in her cheeks and in her chest burned it's brightest, and she couldn't help but nod into his shoulder.

* * *

"Like hell we will!" Nora shouted, her arms crossed and her eyes fierce as she stood before Ruby and Jaune. All of the members of teams RWBY and JNPR left were gathered in Ruby and Jaune's room, the older of the two lying in bed to try to avoid aggravating his stitches. Cinder was outside, her ear pressed to the door in an attempt to listen.

Ruby was indignant and stunned by how quickly the more hyperactive member of the teams responded, her words leaving her mouth just as quickly as her own feet left the ground. "But, Nora-"

"But Nora nothing!" she responded, interrupting Ruby's attempt to continue. "She's a murdering sadist! She killed Pyrrha, she burned Beacon to the ground, and she overran what was left with Grimm! Why the hell should we forgive her, and why the absolute _fuck_ should we give her the chance to redeem herself?"

Ren wrapped an arm around his partner's waist, pulling her back slightly in an attempt to calm her rage. "Nora, I think Ruby and Jaune were about to make their case-"

Nora turned around in his arms and stared right into his pink eyes, yelling out "And? What could they _possibly_ say that could convince us it's the right idea?!"

"Hey, now, hold on," Yang tried to intervene with, raising her left hand up to interrupt. "I trust Ruby, and if she can say that we should trust Cinder, I think we should hear her out."

Sitting close by to her, Weiss cleared her throat loudly. When Yang took the bait and looked at her, Weiss said "While her and Jaune being the ones to try to convince us is a reason to assume that they have a great point, given all she did to them, I don't exactly trust Ruby to make the best judgement calls."

"Excuse me?" Ruby said, her arms outstretched to show her indignation at that remark.

"Well, you charge headfirst into danger with nary a second thought, you frequently use your Semblance to perform inane tasks, and," Weiss responded. She turned her gaze to her partner and finished with "I'm still not over you stealing and writing in my expensive binder."

"That was a year ago!" Ruby cried out. She looked over to the quiet girl on the floor, a book opened up in her hands. "Blake, please just help me out here."

Blake didn't even look up before saying "I don't really care either way. If she joins us, great. If not, then she's our enemy. I don't have enough of a personal grudge to care about what happens to her ultimately."

Nora turned to her with a glare and said "And why not, after all she did to us?"

"She didn't mutilate my best friend, stab me in the gut, and then claim she'd personally hunt down and slaughter everyone I loved," Blake replied, silencing Nora for the time being as she took a step back away from her. There was a silence in the air after that remark, and the energy of the debate seemed to be sucked right out of the room.

After a while, Jaune sat up in his bed and said "Well...okay, how about we just calm down and hear each-other out on this one? I-I mean, just bickering isn't going to solve anything, right?" His appeal seemed to pay off, but only barely, as everyone calmed their attitudes and leaned away from the edges of each bed.

Even in the silence, the glare coming from Nora was still fierce and felt from where Jaune sat, even though she now peered at the door. Before she could respond, her better half did it for her, as Ren replied "I agree. This is important, and having an argument could just exacerbate the problem."

"Okay," Ruby said, her tone now quiet as she tried to keep everyone calm. She felt tempted to reach a hand to Jaune's own in comfort, even going so far as to unclench the held fist on her skirt to free it for him, but with a quick blush unseen by the rest, she reluctantly ceased the movement. With a deep breath in, she said "Yang had a point, and I think we should hear her out, first."

With a nod, Yang took a second to focus her thoughts into the right words to say. Jaune could tell from his point on the bed; the way her eyes flew about the room, she was reading the mood, debating as to whether or not it really was a good idea. But with a sigh, she relented. "Okay..," she began, "out of all of us besides Nora and maybe Ren, Jaune _and_ Ruby have the most to hate about Cinder. And here they are. Asking for support in redeeming her." She leaned back on the bed, supporting herself on her hands, and shrugged. "I dunno," she admitted, "I just trust my sister on this."

Ruby smiled at her sister, before looking right at Nora. "Nora," she asked of her, the other woman glaring at her with a burning expression of venom. "I know Cinder did horrible things. But she really wants to change. She had the opportunity to kill me when she brought me home, she had the opportunity to kill me when we were alone together. She didn't take a single chance."

Nora scoffed and crossed her arms. "Well, duh," she said, as though her protestation was obvious, "she's still clearly weak. Obviously, she just can't take all of us." Jaune and Ruby both raised an eyebrow at her in doubt. To Nora's credit, she quickly realized what they were getting at, looking more unsure as she scratched at the back of her head. "...Okay, okay, maybe there _is_ a point, but...Ren, help me out here!"

The man in question looked at her, kind of surprised at being put under the bus like this, but he eventually confirmed her own feelings. "She knows," Ren admits for her, "but she still isn't sure why the answer is to go along with it, especially because losing Pyrrha made forgiving her a fool's errand."

Jaune laid back down on the bed, and thought for a second. His cheeks moving as his lips twitched in thought brought a slight ache, but his winces were either unnoticed or deemed unimportant. Finally, he replied "Well, what do we have to lose?" He could feel the rest of the room looking at him oddly, but he then said "I mean, either she's genuine, we redeem and forgive her, and she becomes one of the most viable assets we have on Salem... _or_ she's playing us like a damn fiddle, and we can just let the last Guardian kill her, thus _removing_ an asset of Salem's." He looked back up at Nora, who was staring at him, before he shrugged and finished with "Makes sense to me, I dunno."

The room paused, save for Ruby scooting a little closer, before Nora finally sighed and threw up a hand. "Let her in," she conceded, bringing a smile onto Ruby's face.

Weiss and Ren both immediately asked the same question of "Are you sure?" to the woman, making sure she was really on board, but she just stood up and looked at both of them before focusing a rebuttal on Ren's part.

"Yes," she said. "Look, I can't find it in my heart to forgive Cinder. At least, not unless this plan works out. But Jaune has a point. It's either we win 'cause she's on our side, or we win 'cause she's just gone and _Salem_ can't get us. It's a win-win, in my book." Nora walked over to the door, and opened it, revealing Cinder on the other side of it. "...Were you listening in?" she asked the wounded woman.

Cinder shrugged and said, out loud, "More or less," before accepting the invitation and coming inside, where she didn't look anyone in the eye, instead seeming more focused on looking forward and avoiding their eyes.

"Your voice is healing," Jaune notes, watching her and her actions. She's standing more confidently, too, like she did at Beacon. And he couldn't lie, there was a slight pang of worry as he saw both of these facts for himself.

Cinder finally looks at him, and nods. "Indeed," she responds, smirking as she says "In fact, I feel more...myself, lately." Just then, she heard weapons unfolding, and turning around the room revealed that most everyone had unfolded their weapons upon hearing that. She sighed in exasperation and rolled her remaining eye, putting her hands on her hips. In the heat of the moment of the battle, Jaune didn't even realize she had the left one anymore. It looked disturbing, like a Grimm's arm just attached to her. "...Really? I will admit to a poor choice of words, but still..."

Everyone sheepishly folded their weapons back in, with Yang admitting "Force of habit…" while scratching the back of her neck. Cinder rolled her eyes again.

Gesturing with her human hand, she waved to Jaune and asked "Mind if I spend a second alone with this one?" She could feel Nora glaring at her from behind, and she added "I do not wish to hurt him. I just wish to speak with him, is all." Reluctantly, the door opened, her eye trained on Jaune as she saw Ruby hop off the bed, following the rest as they walked out.

"Fine," Nora conceded, "but we hear _anything_ and we're coming back!" Cinder nodded with a noise of acknowledgement, as the door closed, leaving the two alone.

Cinder walked over to the bed, and sat down by Jaune, who seemed to lean back on instinct. Luckily, she was a woman of her word, as she simply asked "So...you killed Ferris, hmm?" She heard a quiet come from Jaune, to which she responded "Guess so...Look-"

"What?" Jaune finished for her, "gonna tell me that the first one's always the hardest, or something? Is that it?" He didn't sound angry, but more suspicious of her.

Cinder sighed and shook her head. "No...maybe?" she admitted, shrugging her shoulders. "I mostly just wanted to say that how you're feeling gets easier. It has nothing to do with killing more people. Just that the guilt, well, eases."

Jaune sat back up again. She sounded like she had experience, mainly because, to Jaune's assumption, she really did. He shifted a bit, before asking her "Who was your first, then?"

She didn't respond at first, seeming content to sit away from him. But eventually, she did turn to look at him for the first time. He could tell she meant what she said about having a return to form. Those yellow eyes burned with a spark he hadn't seen in a long while, and her voice was back to normal, pouring from her lips like a seductress' whisper. "I do not remember," she admits, "it's been so long and so many bodies ago. And yet I...still feel guilty. About having gone to Salem just because she saved me. Because I wanted power."

"And do you still want that power?" Jaune asked her, leaning forward a little. She frowned at the question a little, but nodded.

"Of course," she said, but then frowned more at the response. "But not as much as I want to be... _human._ Not some agent of chaos fighting a war older than me." She looks down at her left hand, letting Jaune see that it was, indeed, Grimm-like. The fingers ended in what looked like claws, and he could see bone through the black. "I want a power I don't _need_ to be a sadist or a monster to get," she continues. "I truly want to be a better person, it's just...that means I start from scratch, searching for a way to be stronger that I never knew I could go for."

Her confession of her motivation gave Jaune a feeling of resolution, as though he had truly completed step one of this plan. He quirked his lip a little, and said "Well...we can help with that. That's why we're here."

By the time the door opened again, things seemed fine once more. Cinder walked out with purpose towards a guest bedroom they had rented for her (and the still M.I.A Qrow), Jaune giving a slight wave as he smiled back at her.

Sooner or later, she would change. He had promised himself that.

* * *

 **Woo! Over a year's hiatus finally over! Sorry for the short chapter, assuming it really is short. I needed to finish this and get it out the door to resurrect the story before working on anything more substantial for it, so I decided to just complete the scene I was on, and start doing more with it next chapter.**

 **And don't worry, next chapter will not take more than a year to come out, I** _ **promise.**_ **I hope you enjoyed this little taste!**


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